Blooms of Insanity
by Crafty Lefty
Summary: At what point does a man move from consciously aware to paranoid? In order to find out, Falco must travel to the literal dark alleys of his past and try and put a stop to something that has plagued him for so long...
1. Chapter 1

The moon looked down over the streets of Corneria City, where all walks of life were out. While the city was generally held as a prosperous one, it wasn't always the ideal place to be. Away from the section of the city housing the government and military buildings was an area much less frequented by the city's elite. Urban areas tended to attract walks of life that were more delinquent, and Corneria City was no exception.

A lone, gray wolf leaned up against a wall in this area of town. He had seen his fair share of hard times, but he would tell you that his share wasn't quite so fair. He did what he needed to do to get by, which more often than not included illegalities. But to him, it was his only option. Crime was all he knew, and crime was his only way to survive. Almost every night he posted up against this very alley, and tonight was one of those nights. He just waited until an opportunity presented itself.

The traffic light that he was watching turned red, and he looked up the street to see if any cars were coming his way. As soon as he turned his head, a motorcycle rider turned the corner and started heading towards him. The bike was a bit on the small side and was very sleek. It had a polished black paint that gave it a nice shine. The wolf couldn't quite see the rider due to his dark clothing and the hood overtop of his head, not to mention the poor lighting of this particular street. All he could tell is that the rider was an avian by his beak. He was wearing a dark coat of some sort with the hood overtop of his head. He also had on a loose-fitting, frayed pair of jeans. He also had on a pair of new-looking black sneakers. The guy looked well kept from his clothes, the perfect candidate for being mugged.

_Good, birds go down easy. What is this idiot thinking? Why the hell would you ride around on a crotch-rocket at this hour in this part of town? Whatever. I don't care. I just hope he has deep pockets. And by the look of him, he probably does._

The bike pulled up to the traffic light with the rider's back to the wolf. As soon as the bird put his feet on the ground to steady himself, the wolf moved off the wall. Moving his hand from behind his back revealed a lead pipe that was the lupine's weapon of choice. Even with his life of crime, he couldn't quite afford a proper mugging weapon. But blunt force seemed to be a good enough motivator for people, so it didn't too much matter.

With a last look around to make sure that nobody was there to witness the act, the wolf stepped off the curb towards the bike. He wasn't the least bit nervous because he had actually lost count of the number of people he had mugged before. Reaching into his jacket pocket, he pulled out a dark ski mask and slipped it over his head, concealing his identity. But just when he was almost within striking distance of his target, the wolf stopped in his tracks.

The bird had pulled a knife out of a holster under his dark coat. He didn't even bother to look back at the would-be assailant. With a flick of the wrist, the avian was waving the knife behind his head, playfully showing it off to the person behind him.

"I wouldn't get any closer if I were you. I know my way around this blade like you know your way around these alleys. Just do both of us a favor and wait for the next person to come around before trying anything."

The wolf was stunned. He had made every effort to be silent, but the avian somehow sensed him coming without a problem. Normally he would just go right ahead and take out any victim who tried to challenge him, but this one was different, somehow. He knew he had to leave this one alone, but wasn't sure why. There was an aura of intensity about him and his words. The wolf just slowly walked backwards until he made it back to the curb.

Falco waited to hear the mugger step back onto the curb before putting his knife away. He couldn't blame the guy. He knew that life better than he cared to. Falco was just glad that the guy had enough sense in him to back off when he should. Thinking back to his gang days, he actually felt sorry for the guy. Nobody ever really wants to turn to a life of committing crimes to get by, but it's the only option for some. It's either that or be homeless.

The bird moved his hands back to the handlebars as the light turned green. He leaned forward and brought his feet up as he started to leave the intersection. Falco didn't like this area at all. It reminded him too much of things that he would only care to forget. But tonight, he had business to attend to; business that would take place nowhere else but in these alleys. He could only hope that he wouldn't come across anybody with a score to settle with him. Lord knows that there were plenty of them.

Falco rode down the street before making a sudden left onto another side street. He tried to avoid the well-lit areas because he didn't want to be spotted by anybody. His semi-celebrity status as a successful mercenary garnered him the recognition of most of the people on Corneria. His presence in this area would certainly set off some alarm bells and hit the media faster than anything. The last thing he wanted was to have the public know that he was involved in some less than lucrative activities at this stage in his life. Actually, that was the second to last thing he wanted. The last was to run into one of his old acquaintances from this part of town. The result was sure to be at least one person bleeding in the gutter. He had to stay careful.

At last, Falco reached his destination. He squeezed the brake and started to turn into an alley that was just narrow enough for a car not to be able to fit through. The light from his bike shown into the alley showing empty space, save for a single hooded figure. The dark cloak covered the man from head to toe, keeping his identity a mystery. Even though the person had his back to Falco, he knew who it was. This was where they agreed to meet, and nobody in their right mind would ever hang around in one of these alleys without purpose.

After making his way into the alley a bit more, Falco turned off his bike, forcing the area back into shadow. He stepped off his polished ride and stood there waiting for his acquaintance to acknowledge him.

"I was beginning to think you wouldn't show. You're late," said the hooded man in a deep voice.

"Save it. You know I have more reason to be here than you do," replied Falco.

"That may be so, but it doesn't mean that you wouldn't get cold feet."

"You know me better than that. I'd never pass up an opportunity like this."

The hooded man began to chuckle at the comment. "Yes, I guess you're right." The cloaked figure turned around and began to make his way towards Falco. The bird leaned up against the wall as the man made his way towards him. He half expected a trap, but Falco couldn't sense anybody else nearby. The man had to know that Falco was armed being in this part of town. So the fact that this man was alone put the avian's mind a bit at ease. It would be nothing short of foolish to try and take out Falco Lombardi single-handedly on his home turf.

The man stopped within an arm's length of Falco, where he continued to speak. "So you know what's going to happen if you don't go through with this right?"

Falco was a bit offended. "Are you threatening me?"

"No. I'm just letting you know that nothing good will happen if you back out of this."

"Yeah, well I'm not. So shut up and give me what I need."

The figure chuckled a bit before saying, "My, my. You really do have something against this guy don't you?"

"You know the answer to that. I've been trying to take him down for years. Way before I even met you."

"I know. I'm not questioning your animosity towards him, believe me. I know what you have against him. I just don't want you to back out because I have a lot at stake here too."

Falco replied, "I know. Give me what I need and you won't have to worry about it anymore."

The figure shuffled a bit as he took something out of his pocket. He slowly handed it to Falco in the dim lighting of the alley. "Here. That's the tracking code for his communicator. He's probably in the bar he frequents when we're here in the city. He spends more time there than he does sleeping."

Falco took the paper and said, "Thanks. I'll keep that in mind."

"You can't blow this Lombardi. Don't make me regret bringing you into this."

"You won't. Believe me, I won't blow a chance like this."

A passing car's headlights shown some light into the alley, brightening up the surroundings of the two figures. Underneath the hood of the cloak, the shining yellow eyes of Panther Caruso stared back at Falco. His trademark facial scar crossed over a devious smile.

Panther said, "Good. I await to hear of your success."

With that, the cloaked feline turned and made his way to the other side of the alley, leaving Falco behind. The avian stared into the darkness, thinking about what just happened. He looked at the piece of paper in his hand with the 20-digit code. This was the key. This was what he needed to end what he's been trying to put a stop to for so long…

* * *

**A/N: This was a spur of the moment inspiration to help get rid of my recent writer's block after the soul-crushing week that was finals week. I'm actually quite happy with how it turned out. There's only going to be one more chapter to this, unless another wave of inspiration hits me. Please leave some feedback and let me know what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

The wheels of Falco's bike squealed to a halt as he pulled over into a parking space along the street. He checked his PDA to see a blinking blue dot immediately on top of a blinking red dot on a street map. He was here; where the tracking code that Panther gave him had led him. Falco looked around him to take in his surroundings. He certainly wasn't in the nicest part of town, but it was certainly better than where he just came from. At least he didn't have to worry about running into any old foes here. This was pretty far away from his old turf.

Looking at the buildings around him, Falco saw three bars on this block alone. He took a moment to scope each of them out. The first was down the street from him on the corner. Judging from the aura of the clientele and the two guys making out by the front door, it was a gay bar. Definitely not what he was looking for. The next was immediately to the right of where he parked. All he could see were three-piece suits sipping on martini glasses. Definitely not it either. The last was across the street and looked like a standard beer and scotch joint where working class men could drown their problems. Yup, that was it.

Falco disembarked his bike and made his way across the street. As he walked up to the place, he looked throughout the glass windows for any familiar faces. He didn't see anybody that he immediately recognized, only people who have certainly seen better days. Nobody here even seemed to be with someone else. Everybody was just keeping to themselves and staring into their drinks. Why would anybody spend as much time here as Panther said this guy did? It looked nothing short of depressing.

Falco entered the bar and stood at the entrance. He didn't hear a single voice, only the randomly selected song coming from the jukebox. He glanced across the room from face to depressed face. He was surprised that nobody seemed to give him strange looks since he certainly wasn't a regular customer and he certainly wasn't someone looking to become one either. But every person in the room was too lost in their own thoughts to even pay him any mind.

Falco continued to scan the singly occupied tables and booths for the man he was looking for. He couldn't find him. Maybe he wasn't here. The communicator signals were a bit delayed, so maybe he had just missed him. Falco thought about and moved to check his PDA again. Just then, a bit of movement caught Falco's attention from the corner of his eye. A vague figure shuffled in his seat. It was strange. Falco could barely see the figure, but not because the room was dark. The mysterious figure was seated at a table all the way in the corner of the room. The person was just somehow fading into the background. Falco had found who he was looking for.

He made his way over to the table, never taking his eyes off of the man in front of him. The seated person didn't even notice the avian approaching him. He was just staring into his drink, lost in his own mind. Without a word, Falco took the seat across from him, continuing to stare at him. The man finally noticed the bird's presence and looked up, facial expression unwavering. He started to fade back into clear view, no longer hiding his identity. After quite a bit of an awkward silence, Falco spoke.

"Hello, Leon."

More awkward silence followed. The two rivals just stared at each other. Leon was just confused as to why Falco was here sitting across from him and Falco was just waiting for Leon to acknowledge his existence. The chameleon didn't seem drunk at all and his drink was only half empty. He was just apparently not particularly happy to see Falco, but this was not a surprise to either party. Falco was unwavering. He was waiting for Leon to break the silence, which he eventually did.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"Looking for you," replied Falco.

"Ok…why?"

"To let you know that I'm going to kill you."

Leon was a bit taken aback, but jaded at the same time. It was no news to him that Falco wanted him dead, so why did he feel the need to come all the way out here and tell him? An even better question: how did Falco find him?

"That's…good to know…I guess. How did you find me here?"

"That's not your concern. What should be your concern is that your life is now in jeopardy. Doesn't that bother you?"

"Not particularly. I'm a mercenary you fool. My life is in danger constantly. The fact that you want me dead is nothing new to me."

Falco said, "Oh no, that's not what I mean. I'm planning on taking you out here on the ground, away from our ships."

This whole affair was just weird to Leon. He wasn't sure what to say, so he just stayed quiet, giving Falco a confused look.

Falco said, "Is that so hard to believe? That I'm planning on killing you?"

"Well, no. I'm just a bit lost as to why you feel the need to tell me to my face."

As soon as Leon finished saying this, a waitress came over the table having noticed a new patron. She was a young fox dressed in the bar's employee attire: a white button down shirt and a black knee-length skirt. She also had a facial expression stating that she clearly didn't want to be there.

She said, "Can I get you something?"

Falco answered, "Gin and tonic, please."

She left to go mix the drink. Falco moved his eyes back onto Leon who was still looking just as confused.

"I'm only telling you for my own sake. To me, the greatest dishonor is to kill someone behind his back. I'm just letting you know so that I know it's not by surprise."

The chameleon said, "So what, you're planning on shooting me in the back but don't want to have it on your conscience?"

Falco laughed as the waitress came back with his drink. As she set it down on top of a napkin, Falco thanked her. He took a sip before saying, "That's probably not my method of choice, but something to that effect."

Leon was still confused. He was beginning to wonder if he had had a few too many drinks already. He still had no idea what Falco was really trying to tell him.

He said, "Lombardi, what the hell. What are you trying to saying to me?"

Falco leaned in and suddenly became much more serious. "Because Leon, I don't think you deserve the air you breathe."

Leon was taken aback again. He knew that people felt that way about him, but Falco's harshness set in a bit.

The avian continued, "You're a torture specialist, Leon. You make a living causing pain to other people. I've been trying to take you down in dogfights just because I don't like you, but now I know what I have to do. I'd be doing the world a service by killing you, and that's just what I plan on doing."

The Star Wolf member became a bit angry, "So why don't you just kill me here and now? What's holding you back?"

"Because I'm not an idiot. I'm not going down for murder, Leon. You know I'm smarter than that."

"Well what the hell makes you think you can kill me so easily anyway? You haven't managed to do it so far, so why is now any different?"

Falco said, "Those were dogfights. This is way different."

"Oh Yeah? And how's that?"

"It just is, trust me."

Leon leaned into the table, becoming angrier. "You're such a cocky asshole. Do you really think I'm so dumb that I'll just walk into any sort of death trap?"

"No, but that's why I've thought ahead?"

"What are you talking about?"

Falco laughed. "Shit, Leon. Do you really think I'm going to tell you?"

"Well, you've been pretty forward so far, so I don't see why not."

"That'll just take all the fun out of it. Don't you want this to be fun, Leon?"

That comment started to creep out the chameleon. Death and pain were his life, but he never enjoyed it. Such a life is what drove him to this bar. So now that Falco was acting so jovial about taking a life didn't sit to well with him, especially since the life in question was his own.

Leon said, "So what is this, some sort of game to you?"

Falco chuckled to himself. "You could call it that."

What Leon said was quite ironic to the avian sitting across from him. He didn't know the half of it.

"You're sick," said the lizard. "I feel like this is just some idiotic joke, but it's just sick."

Falco took a sip from his drink as he said, "I promise you Leon, this is no joke. Unless your own life isn't very important to you."

"You're not like me, Falco. You don't do what I do and you've never seen what I've seen. You have no idea what pain is. It's not a joke at all."

"Maybe so, but you don't understand. I've made it my life to take you down. I already told you. I don't think you deserve to live Leon. To me, I'd be doing the world a great justice by killing you. You know that most people would feel the same way."

"I only do it because I have to…"

"No, Leon," Falco interrupted. "You don't. You're sadistic head is what drove you to it."

"And that's where you're wrong, asshole! You have no idea how much I hated all those years of torturing people for no good reason. They only made me do it because they knew I was good at it."

Falco thought for a moment before saying, "Well you know what, I don't care."

An awkward silence followed.

Falco continued, "I really don't care. Quite frankly, that doesn't change my mind. I still think you deserve to die."

Leon was a bit shaken at this point. He didn't know many people who treated death as such a small matter. And now that he was talking to one of those people, apparently, he was even more disturbed by the fact that this one wanted to take his life personally.

The chameleon said, "Where is this coming from? I've never seen this…sadistic side of you before. Not even in the heat of battle."

Falco replied, "Yeah well, I've never tried to kill someone so personally before. It's always been in my own defense or because it was my job. But this time…" Falco paused to give an icy cold stare to Leon. "It's because I have to."

Falco's gaze did not waver. Leon had never seen such a look of anger and iciness before, especially directed towards him. He was becoming scared. He was now beginning to truly fear for his life. Up until now, he thought that Falco was only trying to mess with his head, shake him up a little bit. But now with his rival's deathly vicious stare directed right at him, he knew it wasn't a joke. Falco truly wanted him dead.

Leon couldn't say anything. He was frozen in place. He always liked to think that he had a strong mind, but now he was truly rattled. Never before had he seen such raw desire like this before. It was truly terrifying.

After a long silence, Falco broke his stare to down the rest of his drink. As he stood up, the bird said, "Take care, Leon. I'll be seeing you soon." Without another word, the blue falcon walked towards the door of the bar, leaving the shaken Leon in his wake. The lizard just sat there watching the bird leave, all the while hoping that he would turn around and tell him it was all just a joke. But he had no such luck. Falco exited the bar back into the night without looking back once.

The avian climbed on his bike and turned the key in the ignition. Without hesitation and knowing that Leon was still watching him from inside the bar, he pulled away from the curb. Falco couldn't help but smile as he accelerated down the road. It had entirely worked.

The truth of the matter was that Falco had no intention of killing Leon, at least not personally. In fact, he didn't especially want him dead either. More than anything, he wanted to take down Star Wolf. All they ever did was cause problems, and that's all that they would ever do. He just wanted to take them down. But history has shown that they could not be bested in battle. The best way Falco could think to get rid of them was from the inside out, and that's just why he was here tonight.

Panther thought Falco just wanted to kill Leon, and was willing to help. Quite frankly, the feline was afraid of his teammate. The lizard was growing more and more unstable as time went on, and it was only a matter of time until he snapped. Panther was afraid for his team, as well as his own safety. Living with a psychologically unstable person could cause nothing but problems, and Panther wanted no part of it. He wanted Leon gone, but was too afraid to do it himself. That's why he contacted Falco.

Panther knew that the opposing mercenary had somewhat of a personal vendetta against Leon, so he seemed like the best person to ask for help. With information exclusive to Star Wolf, such as Leon's tracking information, he thought he could give Falco the tools needed to get rid of him. It was a win-win. Falco had the chance to get rid of his archrival, and the security of Panther's team was ensured. Unfortunately for the feline, Falco had other ideas.

The truth of the matter was that Falco thought it nothing short of despicable to kill an unarmed man. If he was going to kill Leon himself, it was going to be in the cockpit of an Arwing with guns blazing right back at him. He knew what Panther wanted, and honestly, Falco wanted no part of it. However, he wasn't going to give up the useful information that the feline had to offer.

Falco knew that Leon was very unstable. He had been going downhill for years, and it was no secret. The purpose of tonight was to push his mind further to the breaking point. He knew that if Leon snapped, Star Wolf would more than likely collapse on itself. If he lost it, there was no telling what he would do, or whom he would do it to. But more likely then not, it would spell nothing good for him teammates. Nothing makes a man more afraid than the knowledge that his own life is in danger. And when an already unstable person is made fearful for his own life, the breaking point is sure to be reached. Falco knew that it was only a matter of time before Leon snapped. The look in his eye as he was leaving fully assured him that his mind games had worked. He broke Leon Powalski. Now that the seeds of paranoia were planted, the trees of insanity were free to bloom…


End file.
